Wife and i wanted a beater so our twins could learn to drive. I finally got permission for something cool. A 2010 coupe that’s mostly stock except for lowering springs and obnoxious exhaust and hot air intakes. It’s pretty solid mechanically for $3700 just leaks power steering fluid which should be easy fix. If it survives teenagers abuse I wanna build it into a track car that is still street legal and I can live with. I’d appreciate any advice.

 

auto or manual trans?

 

Automatic. I’m a disabled veteran and yeah I know but it is what it is. Not a lot of track use planned. Probably like 2 or 3 a year. So I wanna put brembos up front and build ducts. Can I do 17” wheels? And widest tire size?

 

You'll want a valve body probably (and paddle shifters if you don't have those already), and make sure you do all the driveline stiffeners - poly trans and diff mounts, and a diff brace. Make sure your driveshaft bearing is good.

Wheels - the stock infiniti 18"s barely clear the Akebonos. You might want to look at purpose-made track steelies - they make those to order. 17s are a solid no. I'd make sure you do both ends with akebonos or your brake balance will be off and the proportioning valve will cut pressure to the fronts (or the ABS programming) before they're maxed.

Cooling mods.

Is this going to be a track only car or street/track use? Because you don't want to stiffen the hell out of the suspension and then daily it.

 

Hey there, welcome. Seems like you already are setting this up.

Hard to say which route to point you in being that this sounds more of like a daddy project used to involve and influence the kids.

 

So sport model just has that extra stuff mentioned on trans? Yeah I love paddle shifters and will want that. So wheels and tires are first. 18s it is. I wanna go with akebono calipers. I saw on eBay for a reasonable price. Still gotta get this thing titled and able to get a Louisiana inspection sticker. If it survives being put through hell. I’m lucky to be alive after one of the teens pulled out in front of a dump truck then just stopped in the middle of the road after I yelled Gas! Gas! Gas!

 

Changed my mind on wheels right away. Who knows if it’ll survive. Fingers crossed it does. Pretty sure leak is just old bushings ordered new aluminum one. If entire rack needs replacing, so what they’re not too expensive. This car is awesome. I’ve lost track of how many easy fixes I’ve done in a few hours.

 

Ok so I figured I’d do it right and get most of the **** out of the way. In addition to the bushings I ordered coilovers ARP wheel studs brake calipers drilled and slotted rotors stainless steel lines and open ended lugs. The car already has straight exhaust pipes but child owned so how many defoulers do I need? Gonna have a local race prep shop do whatever labor I can’t then corner balance and align.

 

It’s on jack stands right now. Main thing is the “in-stock” coilovers I ordered aren’t supposed to ship til 28th. Anyone put in takeda cai? Any tips?

 

IIRC you'll need to trim the air openings in the front firewall (IE, around the radiator) to get the pipes to fit. I've got some pics on my build thread if they help - the biggest safety issue is the AC lines on the driver's side that go through the same space.

If you're seriously thinking of slinging this thing around the track, while you have the front apart look at brake cooling ductwork. Z1 has a decent setup but if you look at their pictures, you could fab your own to the same idea. Even with the larger Akebono calipers and rotors the brake cooling is pretty minimal on these cars, especially for as heavy as they are.

 

If kids don’t destroy this the z1 brake ducts are one of the first things I’ll buy. The intake is almost finished. Just gotta clean both MAF sensors and get it fully lined up. Oh yeah the shield piece for filter I ordered separately.

think I’ll keep this thing black with gold phoenix boob thing like trans am in South Park. Wife got a mommy makeover and we both love South Park. The gold foil made me think of this cuz a wrap is just too much after I bought a **** ton of parts.

 

What types of tracks? Oil cooler is super necessary.

 

NOLA and circuit grand bayou for sure. I do SCCA track nights and lapping days with local clubs. Cold air intake is on along with front coilovers and akebono brakes. Just waiting on rear calipers and stainless steel lines then I can finish for now and get it on the road. What tool do I need to press steering knuckle back into control arm?

 

after removing the cross bolt, you should be able to use a C-clamp with moderate force to push it back in. Shouldn't need more than that.

 

Finally got all the parts but I am gonna have to go back and do a few things over. Like I just figured out I need to drill holes for rear damper adjustment extenders. Just need to figure out a way to press a stud into front hub when I think a little too much metal is missing because it won’t set. Hopefully some thread locker will work…

need to start a YouTube channel

here’s an idea of front end, Louisiana is too ****ing hot to finish anything!